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Posts Tagged “

Government

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cellphones

How to Cover Your Text Message Tracks

It's Friday, so the mass of stupid and regrettable (and maybe criminal) text messages you wished you never sent is about explode exponentially, as it does every weekend. Google, as you know, keeps your embarrassing search history for "AZN Squirrels Pooping on Bananas" or "Iron Man upskirt" for 18 months. But how long do Verizon and AT&T hang on to your shameful SMSes? Thankfully, not long at all. Sprint hangs on to your textual diarrhea the longest, for about two weeks, while AT&T dumps them after 48 hours, according to Slate's Explainer. We hit up Verizon, who said a "couple days, tops." There are a couple catches, though. More »

7:30 PM on Fri May 2 2008
By matt buchanan
16,947 views, 28 comments

Latest by The Lab: Just saying, it is probably way easier for NSA spying software to scan text messages for suspicious content than phone calls. Oh you think they aren't scanning? Well, they are. more »

laptops

Border Agents Can Frisk Your Laptop and Gadgets Without Cause

If you don't want border agents to see nekkid pictures of your significant other, you might wanna leave your laptop at home when you travel abroad. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled earlier this week that computers are like any other dumb luggage, so they're subject to search even without reasonable suspicion that you're a turrist or doing anything illegal. More »

2:00 PM on Thu Apr 24 2008
By matt buchanan
7,072 views, 77 comments

new york hates me

No More Tax Free Online Purchases For New York With New "Amazon Tax" Bill

In case living in New York wasn't already expensive enough, state lawmakers passed the "Amazon Tax" bill this week, which will require online retailers to collect sales taxes on purchases shipped to the state, even when they don't have physical operations there. More »

1:00 PM on Sat Apr 12 2008
By Elaine Chow
16,299 views, 100 comments

ipod

Federal Employees Spend Your Tax Dollars on Johnnie Walker Gold, Gambling and... iPods

Shocker: The government blows the money it rips from our paychecks! But now we know where some of that money is going—to buy "iPods, lingerie and socializing" (read: Grey Goose vodka martinis), as well as gambling and internet dating services. The Government Accountability Office (ha) found that half of all transactions by federal employees with government-issued SmartPay cards were for those necessities. Oh, if only Eliot Spitzer had stuck to questionable iPod purchases with government funds. [Washington Post via Listening Post]

4:10 PM on Wed Apr 9 2008
By matt buchanan
5,621 views, 78 comments

Latest by gibson042: @robinandtami: So given an organization with no competition (by its own enforcement), whose "customers" are required to pay whatever is unilaterally demanded, you would like the officials to seize more money and use it to reward employees for what exactly? more »

military

DARPA Wants Contact Lenses to Turn Real-Life Combat Into Call of Duty 4

The problem with cool strap-on heads-up displays a few lucky soldiers get to use on the battlefield today is that they're bulky affairs that make them look like half-assed cyborgs. Plus, the interface is limited. The Pentagon wants to develop contact lenses that'll put "first-person-shooter-type video game" graphics on top the soldiers' vision. Yes, they want to make real-life combat the realest Halo match ever. More »

5:45 PM on Thu Mar 20 2008
By matt buchanan
7,898 views, 42 comments

spying

House Denies Warrantless Wiretapping Immunity For Telcos

In a textbook display of checks and balances, the House of Representatives defied President Bush and the Senate yesterday by passing their version of a surveillance bill without legal immunity for telcos. The bill passed by only 16 votes, far from the 2/3 majority needed to override Bush's inevitable veto. It looks like this legislative battle could continue until the next president takes office in 2009. As we have seen, an Obama administration would deny immunity, McCain would grant immunity, and Clinton? Who knows. [dslreports]

1:55 PM on Sat Mar 15 2008
By Eric Sheline
2,532 views, 58 comments

Latest by Namtillaku: @FlashTurbo: Maybe you ought to at least make an attempt at informing yourself before you make comments like this. If all you can do is display ignorance, you're just making yourself look the fool. [www.salon.com] Refer your attention to the Update. more »

spying

Whistleblower Says the Feds Are Spying on Your (Verizon) Mobile Phone Too

Not sweating the NSA's warrantless wiretapping program 'cause you don't have a landline, just a mobile? Tell your glands to kick in again. A computer security consultant working for a wireless carrier—probably Verizon—stumbled upon a high-speed backdoor built into the carrier's network for the Feds to pull anything from "the billing system, text messaging, fraud detection, web site, and pretty much all the systems in the data center without apparent restrictions." More »

10:00 PM on Wed Mar 5 2008
By matt buchanan
7,834 views, 79 comments

at&t

NSA Gets the Best AT&T Coverage Around

Yes, this is real, and spectacular. The Billboard Liberation Front has launched an "improvement" campaign on AT&T billboards in the SF area "to promote and celebrate the innovative collaboration of these two global communications giants" with their massive warrantless domestic spying program (explained by a cute bear). We're waiting for some "Yes, the NSA can hear you now" Verizon billboards to match. Update: Video of them putting it up after the jump.
More »

3:20 PM on Thu Feb 28 2008
By matt buchanan
17,278 views, 128 comments

Latest by nutbastard: @Radio_Radio: And if we all thought like you, we'd be speaking German. more »

crusher

DARPA Robot Crusher Truck Earns Its Name

There isn't anyone inside this six-and-half-ton beast, getting off on smashing through crappy 80s cars. No, the Army's latest baby, built by Carnegie Mellon's Robotics Engineering Center, is a robot. The Crusher navigates (and destroys) autonomously and will climb four-foot "steps" as easy as it tears up a hill. Apparently other vehicles in their Future Combat System family will take after this big bad monster truck, officially bringing the Army into the business of wrecking ass. With robots. [Danger Room, Vid via IEEE]

9:00 PM on Thu Feb 21 2008
By matt buchanan
12,460 views, 31 comments

Latest by BenjaminWright: As the video shows, robots can be dangerous. They and their owners will be subject to the rule of law. [hack-igations.blogspot.com] more »

do not call

Do Not Call (Ever) Improvement Act Signed Into Law

The bill to make the Do-Not-Call registry everlasting—so you never have to remind the government that you hate telemarketers—has been made into a real live law by President Bush. [Consumerist]

2:00 PM on Wed Feb 20 2008
By matt buchanan
5,244 views, 68 comments

i feel better already

Snuggly the Security Bear Explains: Warrantless Wiretapping Is All About Love and Freedom

If you're still confused about the whole warrantless domestic spying program that the telecoms colluded with the government on (which is being conveniently shuffled away from official scrutiny, forever), Snuggly the Security Bear by Mark Fiore sums it all up in the absolute cuddliest way possible. [Mark Fiore via BoingBoing]

11:25 PM on Thu Feb 14 2008
By matt buchanan
18,771 views, 155 comments

gadgets

Last Chance to Save Our Privacy Rights from Warrantless Domestic Spying

While the Senate passed the bill giving telecoms like AT&T and Verizon a free pass on their collusion with government to warrentlessly wiretap American citizens, there's one last hope we might one day find out the scope and depth of the program. The House's version of the bill does not include a telecom immunity provision, meaning they have to square it up w/ the Senate before sending it off for Bush's rubber stamp, and a bunch of Reps are taking a stand. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has forms and contact info set up for people to sound off to their respective Reps to support the House's version and our privacy rights. [EFF, Image via Digital Blasphemy]

8:14 AM on Thu Feb 14 2008
By matt buchanan
2,323 views, 66 comments

Latest by -Core-: @benz57us: Just wanted to say, a big thanks, and appreciate you sharing the link to that video. It was indeed a good watch. more »

identity theft

Biometric Social Security Cards Proposed to Combat ID Theft

Two Illinois congressmen are introducing legislation with the goal of upgrading that flimsy paper piece of crap we call a social security card to include a photo, fingerprint and computer ID chip. Recent data shows that nearly $45 billion is lost each year due to identity theft, which makes it increasingly necessary to safeguard our important documents from fraud. The only drawback is that the new cards will cost around $8 to make as opposed to the current 50 cent price tag. Damn...we've been paying 50 cents for those things? [Chicago Tribune]

4:50 PM on Wed Feb 13 2008
By Sean Fallon
3,739 views, 66 comments

Latest by Mr_Nowitt: Yeah, that's the answer. Not our banks to actually VERIFY who is accessing the information or why. Wait they do, for an additional charge. I think the problem lies in the application/verification process. I'm sure these can be duplicated/hacked/modded. more »

spying

Senate Gives Telcos Free Pass On Warrantless Domestic Spying Program

Joel at BBG writes in five precise words what it means that the Senate has just granted retroactive immunity to telcos (AT&T, Verizon and others) for participating in the government's warrantless wiretapping program that spied on American citizens: "We Lost. The Telcos Won." More »

6:30 PM on Tue Feb 12 2008
By matt buchanan
4,669 views, 78 comments

government

House Bill Mandates Colleges Make Plans for Network Filtering

I bet you were feeling pretty happy with Congress a little bit ago. Get ready to go back to normal! The College Opportunity and Affordability passed the House today (sounds good so far, right?), but it carries a provision that forces schools to make plans for network filtering mojo and a legal alternative to P2P file-sharing. More »

7:30 PM on Fri Feb 8 2008
By matt buchanan
3,657 views, 28 comments

do not call

Hey Telemarketers, Don't Call Me. Like, Ever.

With the bill Congress just approved and sent to the Bush-in-Chief, I won't ever have to say that again, since it'll pretty much be the freakin' law. The old version Do-Not-Call registry required you to remind the gov't every couple years you still don't wanna chat w/ telemarketers, but the updated bills from the House and Senate make it pretty much permanent. Conspicuously still missing from banned phone spammers are the ones telling you to vote for Hillary 'cause Obama is a Muslim or McCain because Mitt Romney has too much hair. [Ars Technica]

5:50 PM on Fri Feb 8 2008
By matt buchanan
6,459 views, 32 comments

Latest by mtopper: @orionburch: Because his middle name is Hussein? more »

airports

TSA Apologizes for Being Douches About Gadgets HOORAY BLOGGERS!

So, this new Transportation Security Administration blog is both endearing and creepy. Endearing, because it's cute when bureaucrats try to act like real people with real lives and feelings and whatnot, but creepy because of things like its subtitle: "Terrorists Evolve. Threats Evolve. Security Must Stay Ahead. You Play A Part." Anyhoo, some real bloggers, like Scott at Laughing Squid pointed out to them that at some airports, specifically San Fran's, security people were being dicks about gadgets in bags—making you pull out everything from cords to BlackBerries, not just laptops. The bloggercrats checked into it and guess what? Not kosher! More »

10:39 AM on Thu Feb 7 2008
By matt buchanan
7,284 views, 38 comments

Latest by ry_ry: It's amusing to me coming back from Germany and getting the little yellow tags on your checked bag "Has not been opened..." But at O'Hare, my bag gets rifled through. I guess tall, skinny white guys fit their profile. Next time I more »

weapons

Divine Thunderbolt Bunker Buster: Bye Bye Mole People

The Air Force's old bunker buster, BLU-113, was a bunch of explosives crammed inside of an old howitzer barrel. Its latest instrument of boom, the BLU-122, uses a new a steel shell with a hardened nose and 780lbs of thermobaric explosive to pound through 28 feet of concrete or 120 feet of dirt like styrofoam, with 70 percent more explosive power. If that's not the ticket to scattering your bits everywhere, they've also got a bouncy bomb. More »

8:10 PM on Mon Feb 4 2008
By matt buchanan
17,612 views, 52 comments